Worried lest the pet lose himself in the dark cavern, the girls quickly ran back to the shelf of projecting rock.
Anxiously, Judy peered into the deep, rather terrifying hole.
“Pete!” she called. “Pete! Come back here!”
The little dog could not be seen, but the girls heard a muffled, answering bark. It seemed to come from far down in the bowels of the rock.
“He’s a long distance in,” Judy said anxiously. “What’ll we do, Ardeth? Go after him?”
“No, we don’t dare,” the other decided. “It’s dangerous to explore caves without taking precautions. Besides, Miss Ward is expecting us at the cottage.”
“Pete may never find his way out. That’s what worries me.”
The dog’s smothered bark gradually faded until no sound could be heard. Thrusting head and shoulders into the hole, Judy tried again to catch a glimpse of the truant pet.
“Not a sign of him,” she reported hopelessly. “All we can do is report to Bart Ranieau. He was such a nice little dog—”
“Do you see him?” Ardeth demanded as Judy broke off her remark.